The demolition industry has a particular character for being a harsh environment in which brute force takes priority over calculated thought; however this image is far from correct. There is a substantial amount of work that happens behind the scenes of the demolition and construction sector which is firmly grounded in the academic world. Moreover, this unseen work is vital to the success of the more visible procedures.
One part of this unnoticed work is site surveying, or more precisely pre-demolition and post-demolition topographical surveying. This kind of work demands a great balance of specific technical know-how as well as experience of the industry and a natural intuition for the intricacies of the job. This article explores the ins and outs of this work.
Topographical Surveys
A topographical survey is a study of the physical features of a particular piece of land. The purpose of a topographical survey is to map the naturally occurring and man-made traits of a specific landscape to a high degree of accuracy.
Topographical surveys can be carried out on a very wide range of landscapes, from open countryside to urban developments and across a variety of reliefs and land surfaces. Surveys can be developed to take into account a great number of factors, such as ground conditions or vegetation, and as such can be used for a number of tasks.
Common Applications for Topographical Surveys
Perhaps the most extensively used, and most generally recognised application for topographical surveys is cartography, or map making. Modern maps include a great amount of information about the landscape they relate to, including waterways, elevations and ground surface, all of which will have been collected via a topographical survey. This information is also being offered online.
Topographical surveys also have a key role to play in the construction industry. When people or companies are looking to construct any kind of structure they will need to carry out extensive surveys as part of the design phase of the project. These surveys are often an essential part of any application for planning permission as well.
Surveys also play a key safety role in primary industries such as mining, or in other industrial sectors that interact with the terrain, such as demolition and infrastructure. Businesses in these fields will use surveys to plan their projects, but also to make sure that they can guarantee the safety of their workforce on site. As a result, topographical surveys are often a legal requirement for these types of projects.
To conform to particular health and safety legislation a demolition survey is required prior to demolition work taking place.
Types of Survey
The arena of topography addresses a large number of physical features so it is beneficial to identify what type of topographical survey is appropriate for a particular situation.
“Lie of the land” Surveys
These types of topographical surveys are designed to create a summary of the physical characteristics of any given plot of land. Whilst the information gathered by the survey will be very accurate, and might be very extensive, the purpose of these surveys is to provide a site summary.
These surveys will usually incorporate a boundary survey that sets out to determine the extent of the site and highlight any specific restraints that are determined by the geography of the site. They can also include a level survey that will plot the elevation of the terrain and the various gradients that exist. Any survey can be customised to specification though.
Building Surveys
Building surveys are more typically concerned with man-made structures on a site, including the surveying of special machines and even infrastructure features. This type of survey is more commonly associated with the demolition sector because it can give a detailed plan of the building to be demolished. It can be used on other projects as well.
A building survey will almost certainly include a measured survey, which entails creating a comprehensive plan of the external and interior dimensions of a structure. Depending on the requirements of the job, a measured survey could provide simple building “footprint” measurements, or might produce a very detailed plan of the structure.
Content of a Topographical Site Survey
A survey of a demolition site will almost definitely include the information gathered by the types of boundary and building surveys mentioned above. This information will be needed so the demolition company can plan a demolition that is both satisfactory and safe. More often than not these surveys will also be legally requested.
Surveys will often contain information about the utility services that are present on a site before any demolition or construction work happens. This is an essential safety aspect since any unmonitored destruction to pipes and cables carrying water, gas and electricity could be very dangerous. The information might also be used to plan new structures, based upon the existing supply of these ammenities.
Another aspect of the site study will often be an audit of resources on the site. This type of study will be a quantity survey of the various types of materials that can be located on site, for example, tiles and masonry, concrete that can be utilised as hardcore or even timber. By getting an accurate audit of site materials the construction firm can more precisely determine the need to import building resources, or they can re-use the materials on a different job.
It is an evident fact that before construction demolition should be completed in sites that contain existing houses and other buildings.
Importance of Site Surveys
Perhaps the most significant reason to undertake a topographical site survey is to ensure the health and safety of the individuals who will be doing work on the site. The industrial sectors that most frequently call for site surveys are dangerous enough as it is without having to worry about the integrity of the ground on which they are working. Taking a detailed topographical survey can help to mitigate safety risks of this nature.
Another critical reason to get a proper survey done is to highlight any potential difficulties that may arise because of the physical characteristics of the region. Certain things may not be evident on the surface of the site and will only be discovered once digging or demolition has begun. By then it may be too late to deal with these problems, or at best they will be expensive issues to solve.
The inventory of site supplies, as previously mentioned, can be of great value to a demolition or construction organisation working on a project. Not only are building materials themselves expensive, but transporting them to the site could be a very expensive task in itself. Any time that material can be reused on site provides an opportunity to save development time and money.
Topographical surveys can also identify other areas that will be of use to the project planners. For example, if the gradients on a site would be prohibitive to specific vehicles or equipment then a new entry route or alternative machinery will have to be found.
Positioning of Survey Control
During the surveying and construction phases of a building project, the apparatus required for the physical surveying of the site and control of the survey data will often be stored on-site. This is clearly a problem when it comes to the demolition phase of a project since the machinery is both costly and sensitive. It is therefore wise to move this equipment off-site during demolition.
Once the demolition has taken place and the site has been deemed safe for workers to return to it, the surveying equipment can be restored to its initial position on site. This will allow for efficient data collecting to take place for a post-demolition study, and keeps a single point of contact for anybody who requires the topographical survey information.
Who can Perform Site Surveys?
Because topographical site surveys can play such a crucial role in the success or failure of a construction or demolition project it is critical that they are undertaken carefully by the right people. There are different divisions of site surveying and each one will have specific certificates associated with it. Getting surveyors with these specific skills will certainly be beneficial.
When choosing a company to undertake the surveying work necessary for your project it will be wise to choose a company with a good reputation and a proven track record. Ask to see reviews of their previous work and try to obtain feedback about their performance on past projects.
Who will use the Survey Information?
When an adequate level of details has been accumulated by a site survey it needs to be passed out to the appropriate personnel on-site. Who gets what pieces of information will largely depend on the job roles being executed, but can also rely on the stage that a project is at.
Project Planners
Project planners will usually require access to all of the information gathered by a topographical survey, although they will particularly need to use information regarding the physical relief of a site before the design phase, and a site materials inventory before they can plan the construction phase. The more data that can be made available to project planners will help the smooth running of the venture.
Demolition Experts
Demolition businesses will want to know about the internal and external characteristics of any building or structures that they are arranged to take down. Whilst every project will have individual requirements, demolition workers will generally need to know about the fundamental structure of a building and the materials it is made out of.
Site Engineers
Construction engineers on-site will be particularly interested in the survey data about the relief and topography of the terrain. It is usually the case that they will want to assemble on a flat surface, so they will use details about the natural lay of the land to determine what work will be needed to create a steady foundation for any building. They will want this information prior to and in the course of the construction stage of a project.
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